Chapter 119 "I Heard His Lordship Has Established Several Mojin Captains in the Army?"

"I heard His Lordship has established several Mojin Captains (grave robbers) in the army?"

Xue San sharpened his dagger while speaking to Liang Cheng, who sat beside him.

"Truly His Lordship's peculiar taste."

Liang Cheng sat there, silent.

Xue San brought the dagger to his lips and gently patted it, saying,

"Tell me, all this to-do, so many soldiers, so many laborers, battling for so long, consuming a vast amount of manpower and resources, just to gain a Zhennanguan (Suppress the South Pass), is it worth it?"

In name, there was also Shanggu Prefecture, but even when it was in the hands of the Chu, it was known for its barrenness. After the Chu army razed it and then the Yan army razed it again, there was nothing left to gain.

Most importantly, how could one focus on developing the people's livelihood in such a military frontline territory? That would be pointless.

There was plenty of barren land in the Jin East region that needed to be reclaimed, and too many cities and official roads that needed to be rebuilt. There was no time to waste money on building up Shanggu Prefecture.

Shanggu Prefecture was, in fact, just another battlefield carved out by both sides. Whoever held Zhennanguan would likely control Shanggu Prefecture. In the past, when Situ Lei guarded Zhennanguan, he basically split Shanggu Prefecture with the Chu.

Furthermore, the Wei River lay south of Shanggu Prefecture, another natural barrier, though not impassable. This unique geographical feature made the vast and flat land of Shanggu Prefecture too suitable for use as a battlefield because it was indefensible.

Liang Cheng shook his head and said,

"The account isn't calculated like that. At first glance, it seems the gains are only this much, but first, you have to look at three points.

"First, before the campaign against Chu, Nian Yao defended Zhennanguan, and the Chu even built fortresses far north of Zhennanguan, almost forming a continuous line.

After driving out the barbarians, why did the Jingnan King (King who Pacifies the South) stay in Fengxin City?

Do you think he liked the dilapidated scenery of Fengxin City?

It's simply that his presence there could deter the Chu army in the Zhennanguan area, preventing them from advancing north rashly.

Before the campaign against Chu,

the Chu were actually in the offensive position, while Yan was mainly on the defensive.

The power of the Chu had already spread to Jin East, like a sharp knife probing into the Jin East region.

To put it bluntly, if the campaign against Chu had failed or stagnated, and the main force of the Yan army retreated, or if the Jingnan King himself left Fengxin City, the first places the Chu would besiege in a northern expedition would be two: Fengxin City and our Xuehaiguan (Snow Sea Pass).

What you see is that we only captured one Shanggu Prefecture, but in reality, you have to add most of Jin East.

With Zhennanguan in Chu hands, we had to gather 100,000 troops to confront them, and these 100,000 troops had to be elite. Even then, it would only barely cope with the first wave of the Chu's possible northern expedition;

In the rear, starting from Yingdu, we had to prepare a second line of defense.

Invisibly, at least 200,000 troops had to be supporting Zhennanguan.

But with Zhennanguan in our hands, a strong pass, two thousand troops would be enough, along with some small outposts and scouts to coordinate. This line of defense could be considered established.

This greatly reduces the pressure on border defense.

Furthermore,

with Zhennanguan in my hands, the Chu State is like the Song Dynasty in history after losing the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun.

The second point is that even without fighting, the march of a large army into Chu, as the saying goes, 'soldiers are like bandits,' is a drain on Chu's war potential. In addition, the elite Chu army suffered heavy losses in this campaign, and the imperial capital was burned. The Chu are severely weakened.

Within ten years, unless there is a major upheaval in Yan, the Chu will not be able to launch any northern expeditions.

In addition, the defense of the entire Three Jin area, with Xuehaiguan, Zhennanguan, and Nanmenguan (South Gate Pass) in our possession, is equivalent to closing all external portals. Without external intervention, even if the Jin people want to cause trouble or restore their country, it will be difficult to make waves. The Three Jin area is like meat rotting in the pot.

Originally, it was a piece of land that had to be desperately guarded to prevent others from snatching it away, but now it has become the back garden of the Yan people.

The third point,

is for ourselves.

Based on his achievements in this campaign against Chu, it is almost certain that His Lordship will be ennobled as a marquis.

The Jin East region will fall into our hands, meaning that such a large area will become our true base of operations in the future.

The original Xuehai Army garrisons, plus the Gongsun Zhi and Gong Wang divisions, will be able to recruit troops by attracting displaced people and enlisting population in the coming period.

The population is currently small, but it doesn't matter. The territory is here, and with proper planning and management, the future is still promising.

After all, Jin East is dilapidated because of years of war, but in fact, the climate and geographical conditions of Jin East are much better than those of Beifeng Prefecture.

Generally speaking, the positions of offense and defense have been reversed.

In fact, Yan would rather attack Qian, because attacking Qian is more profitable, but the problem is that if you attack Qian first, the Chu will inevitably send troops north, but if you attack Chu first, the Qian are likely to slack off, as they did this time.

After weakening Chu, it will be difficult for Chu to cause trouble when dealing with Qian next time.

Oh, right,

you can also recruit more people under your command. Go to Fourth Sister again for clothing patterns and make hundreds of sets of Flying Fish uniforms. His Lordship likes this style."

"Heh heh, who would have thought, Zombie, you're paying attention to this too?"

Xue San couldn't help but sigh. Without realizing it, everyone had changed a lot.

"His Lordship told me the other day that he intends to improve the style of our army's armor after the war is over, still with black as the main tone, but with more refined details.

Also, we can add markings similar to family crests on the armor and weapons."

Xue San asked, "What are you planning to use as a family crest?"

Family crests were a common product, a form of inheritance and a symbol.

During the previous battles with the Chu army, the armor and weapons of the private soldiers of various noble families actually had their own family crests. Even in Great Yan, in the past when the aristocratic families were in power, the armor of the various family retainers also had the symbols of each family.

Liang Cheng frowned slightly and said,

"His Lordship means to use a double-headed eagle?"

"Hmm..."

Xue San used his dagger to scrape the stubble on his chin and said,

"Wouldn't that be a little too obvious?"

Liang Cheng said, "The problem is, we seem to have the confidence to be a little more obvious."

"It's still early, the establishment of the office hasn't been completed yet." Xue San blew on the edge of the dagger. "At least we have to wait until the rewards are given, the fiefdom is given, and then the troops are prepared."

"That's right." Xue San added, "But this requires us to gather together and re-discuss it, dividing it into several areas. I'm not saying we should pursue balanced development, but there has to be a general plan."

"Yes."

The territory was larger, no longer limited to Xuehaiguan alone, so the matters that needed to be considered overall were naturally more numerous.

If the planning could be done well in the early stages of construction, it would be much cheaper than making temporary changes after problems arose in the future.

"But are we really going to use the double-headed eagle? I feel like it's not innovative enough," Xue San said.

"Then what should we use, a dragon?"

"No, not that far, not that far."

Using a double-headed eagle would at most be said by those with ulterior motives that the Earl of Pingye was insatiable, and we could explain it as being vigilant against threats from all sides for Great Yan.

It just so happened that the north was a snow plain, and the south was the Chu, right on point.

But if you use a dragon as a family crest,

well,

prepare for war!

"However, we can finally take a break. My wife is still waiting for me in Xuehaiguan."

Xue San missed Hu Bamei,

"A'Cheng, you don't know how difficult it is to find a woman in this world who can match you."

Liang Cheng said,

"The Blind Man said that you used to have a good relationship with a husky when you were in Tuman City?"

"That's true, but why does it sound a bit weird?"

"I don't know."

"Speaking of which, I wonder when we'll have the opportunity to go to the West and see what it's like. Magicians, Battle Qi, it should be interesting."

Liang Cheng said,

"I'm more interested in whether there will be something like the Macedonian phalanx over there."

"Guan Gong versus Qin Qiong?" Xue San rubbed his chin. "It sounds exciting, but the problem is that we're on the far east side, and they're on the west side. It doesn't connect."

Liang Cheng silently stood up and said,

"I'm going to patrol the camp."

"Go, go."

Liang Cheng took a few steps, then stopped and said,

"It doesn't connect now, but in the future, it's hard to say."

...

Zhennanguan,

city wall.

Zheng Fan had originally thought that Old Tian would remain in a state of quiet recuperation, not seeing outsiders.

Although he would greet him from outside the tent every two days, it was only a formality. He didn't expect to see him, as he subconsciously thought Old Tian should be in closed-door recovery. But who would have thought he would see him today?

However, Old Tian was wrapped in a fur coat.

He was actually wearing more than Zheng Fan.

This was enough to show how serious Old Tian's injuries were.

However, watching Old Tian walk in front of him, climb up the city tower, and stand behind the battlements, Zheng Fan didn't worry too much. After all, Sword Saint's recovery was a precedent. Old Tian should be fine too.

At most, he would just need to recuperate. He was a man who had faced the Fire Phoenix head-on. How could he be so fragile?

Zheng Fan didn't ask about the specific injuries, because he knew Old Tian wouldn't tell him the details. Furthermore, it would be extremely uncomfortable and awkward for a strong person to explain the details of their weakness to another person.

In Zheng Fan's view,

Old Tian and Sword Saint were both the type with the protagonist template;

In comparison,

he was more like a supporting character who steadily climbed up step by step.

So, Marquis Zheng was always very careful and cautious, afraid that one day he would accidentally be used as a stepping stone by another protagonist.

Snowflakes were still falling, landing on Old Tian's white hair and then disappearing.

"A million soldiers and civilians, the strength of the whole country, battling for a year, finally, we've taken it."

Tian Wujing sighed.

Zheng Fan nodded.

Although the Yan army had never launched a formal attack on Zhennanguan from beginning to end, whether it was the outer sweeps or the internal infiltration, interweaving, and detours,

even including the raid on Yingdu,

the fundamental goal,

was still this Zhennanguan.

Now, Zheng Fan's strategic vision was naturally not comparable to that of an assassin like Xue San, who was accustomed to hiding in the shadows.

Of course, he knew what it meant to have Zhennanguan in hand.

It was equivalent to Qin swallowing Ba and Shu,

equivalent to Liao gaining Yanyun,

If it weren't for Yan's excessive consumption of national power,

if it weren't for the natural disasters that had appeared, with crop failures in many places this year,

the campaign against Chu would never have ended like this.

But,

at least a gap was left here,

Five years later,

Ten years later,

Even twenty or thirty years later,

if Great Yan was still around at that time,

the emperor at that time would be able to attack Chu much more easily.

Even if they didn't attack Chu on a large scale now, they could still isolate the threat of Chu outside Zhennanguan.

"Chu has many problems, but in this world, we are not afraid of many problems, but we are afraid of the appearance of someone who can solve problems." Tian Wujing said, "Your brother-in-law will definitely become a major problem for Great Yan in the future."

"Your Highness, rest assured, I'm watching him."

These words were spoken with great confidence.

"What are you planning to do next?" Tian Wujing asked, "This King is planning to submit a memorial."

"Reporting to Your Highness, three steps;

First step, recruit displaced people, restore the people's livelihood in the Jin East region. Your Highness knows my abilities in this area, so I won't go into detail.

Second step, manage the snowy plains in the far west, absorb barbarian labor, absorb barbarians to be used by me, to graze for me, to work for me, to transform the threat from the north into my strength, to train the wolves of the north into hunting dogs that can be taken out to hunt.

Third step, restore relations with Chu, engage in trade, and act insincerely."

Tian Wujing stood there, listening to Zheng Fan's presentation, and then said:

"In the second step, you must be vigilant against the barbarians. It is not impossible to enslave and drive them, but you must also be careful of backlash. Have you ever thought that if you introduce the barbarians like this, let them become officials and generals in Jin, decades later, if something goes wrong, it may be more harmful than the barbarians killing their way into Xuehaiguan again?"

It had to be said that the Jingnan King's vision was very far-reaching.

Because there were many people in history who had played similar tricks and failed, one was Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and An Lushan, and the other was Li Chengliang and the Jurchens.

But the problem was,

for Zheng Fan,

he wasn't like Xuanzong and Li Chengliang, but more like the latter two.

"In the third step, the Chu are indeed greatly weakened this time, but that person is not without the courage to take risks again when he sees an opportunity. You can usually greet him with a smile and reminisce with him, after all, he is a relative;

but once you detect a sign, don't be polite, turn your face when you need to, and beat him when you need to. The experience that my Great Yan has summarized for dealing with neighboring countries for eight hundred years is that you can't indulge them."

"Yes, this subordinate is taught."

"Actually, this King believes that you understand all this, but I still have to give you some instructions."

"Is Your Highness planning to return to the capital?"

Zheng Fan heard the meaning.

"The war is over, and this King should return to Litian City. She's been alone for too long and will be lonely."

"I'll escort Your Highness back."

"No need."

"It's a must, Your Highness, you have many enemies."

"This King has the Jingnan Army guarding me."

As he spoke,

Tian Wujing's lips revealed a smile,

"Since I didn't die in the hands of the Fire Phoenix in Yingdu, how could I allow myself to die inexplicably in the hands of petty people?

This King promised you that when that time really comes, I will tell you, and you can also come and advise this King."

"Your Highness, go back and take a look."

Go back and see the child.

Tian Wujing was silent.

The snow in the sky seemed to be falling even harder.

This winter will be very cold, but you can also say the opposite, a good snow promises a bumper year.

Life always has to have some hope.

After a long time,

Tian Wujing said, "There are too many troops around."

There were too many troops around,

the various armies of the Chu campaign had not yet been disbanded, and they were almost all gathered in the area north and south of Zhennanguan.

The army had just returned in triumph,

morale was high,

the army's heart was gathered,

the Jingnan King's prestige was also at its peak.

Going to see Tiantian now,

and asking Tiantian,

what do you want?

If Tiantian said, "Dad, I want the dragon throne."

Tsk,

that would really be...

Marquis Zheng knew what the Jingnan King was worried about. He wanted to say that it was absurd, after all, how old was Tiantian?

But,

Marquis Zheng suddenly thought of the Blind Man who was staying at home.

Blind Man,

uh,

if the Blind Man knew that Tian Wujing was coming to see the child,

heaven knows what that guy would teach Tiantian to say in advance!

For example, the dragon throne is made of the best Shaqima (a type of Chinese pastry) in the world, do you want it?

"Xuehaiguan and Zhennanguan must be guarded by your own people. Gongsun Zhi and Gong Wang's troops can be kept, but they cannot be allowed to approach these two passes.

Fengxin City is a good place. If managed well, it can be the next Yingdu. You can establish your office in Fengxin. Keep one of Gongsun Zhi and Gong Wang's troops stationed by your side as a show, and the other can be arranged to the other side.

After a few years, when you feel that you can completely control them and subdue them, you can make other arrangements."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"For this war, many laborers were conscripted. Find a way to intercept them. The laborers are reluctant to leave their homeland. Sweet talk is useless, and the cost of silver is too high. Just intercept them with troops.

Anyway, the Jin East region is key, shielding the snowy plains above and suppressing Chu below. This place has long been devastated, and the imperial court needs to migrate people to garrison it, so doing this will save a lot of trouble."

"Uh... Yes, Your Highness."

"There should still be a lot of grain and grass in Yingdu that was originally used to supply the frontline army. Send someone to move everything here.

We know that the war is over,

but we didn't say it was over, so who can say it's really over?

Just say that the Chu have a large-scale counterattack trend and need to urgently transfer grain and supplies.

Once they arrive, detain them, both people and goods."

"Uh..."

"What's wrong?"

Zheng Fan hesitated and said,

"Your Highness, my reward hasn't been given yet. Although the people below are saying that this subordinate will be ennobled as a marquis this time, and that this subordinate may guard the Jin East region this time.

But isn't that just wishful thinking?

I'm afraid that if I show all my greed now,

it will arouse resentment from all sides above."

He hasn't even established a marquis's mansion yet,

and he already has the air of a local warlord?

If you really let you establish an office and build a marquis's mansion, what would happen?

Zheng Fan was worried that the cooked duck would fly away because of his impatience.

Tian Wujing reached out,

placed it on the battlements,

gently stroked the layer of snow on top,

and slowly said;

"This King, hasn't died yet."

——————

Good night.